Human skin neural crest progenitor cells are susceptible to BRAF(V600E)-induced transformation.

ABSTRACT: Adult stem cells are multipotent and persist in small numbers in adult tissues throughout the lifespan of an organism. Unlike differentiated cells, adult stem cells are intrinsically resistant to senescence. It is unclear how adult stem cells in solid organs respond to oncogenic stimulation and whether these cells have a role in tumor initiation. We report here that expression of BRAF(V600E) in human neural crest progenitor cells (hNCPCs) did not induce growth arrest as seen in human melanocytes, but instead, increased their cell proliferation capacity. These cells (hNCPCs(V600E)) acquired anchorage-independent growth ability and were weakly tumorigenic in vivo. Unlike in human melanocytes, BRAF(V600E) expression in hNCPCs did not induce p16(INK4a) expression. BRAF(V600E) induced elevated

SUBMITTER: Kumar SM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3695032 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature